Spool with plastic connectors



United States Patent 01 "fice 3,521,833 Patented July 28, 1970 3,521,833SPOOL WITH PLASTIC CONNECTORS Louis H. Ridgeway, 1403 St. Anthony Drive,and Lawrence M. 'Ridgeway, Jr., 900 Ranch Road, both of Florence, S.C.29501 Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 659,221, Aug. 8, 1967.This application July 10, 1968, Ser.

Int. Cl. B65h 75/14 US. Cl. 242118.61 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A ready-to-assembly spool which enables a user toexpeditiously assemble or disassemble the prefabricated individualcomponent'parts at the site of use, if desired, without tools. Itcomprises a core, spool heads, and core and thimble-like head assemblingand retaining connectors. On-the-spot assembling overcomes perplexingpackaging, shipping and storage problems.

It is a matter of common knowledge that prior art cardboard andequivalentspools also'utilize a tubular cylindrical hub or core,duplicate heads whose centrally apertured portions abut theends of thecore, and assembling and securing" means of one type or anotherwhichserves, according to its capability, to' coordinate the component partsand maintain them in spool form. A significant distinction betweenanalogous prior art adaptations, compared one with the other, has to dowith the telescoping connector means which, whether it be aferrule,collar, thimble or the like, functions to assemble and maintainthe parts in permanently assembled relationship. a I

There has long existed a need for aknockdown type spool, that is, aconstruction and arrangement'wherein each component part is carefullyprefabricated and standardized with the idea that the parts can be handassembled, that is, put together at the point of use, and in doing so toreducerequirements for necessary storage space and to cope, generallyspeaking, with packaging and storage problems. A typical example of aprior art spool is represented in the patent to Sobota 2,049,334. Sobotarepresents in a general way the background of the art and if checkedinto will show that virtually all prior art spools in the category ofinvention'under advisement are such that the assembling units andadapters are applied by machines, require special tools for assemblingpurposes and in many other instances necessitate the use ofobjectionable adhesive media which is relied upon to keep the componentparts together.

The use of adhesive media requires that the spool to be made up inadvance poses storage problems of such bulky items. The cost and use ofgluing is an undesirable operational step. Where spools are made up at awinding station there is danger of glue depositing on the material whichis being spooled. Metal connectors and uniting ferrules areobjectionable because of the tendency to rust and likelihood of cuttingand injuring users.

It is an object of the present invention to structurally, functionallyand in other ways improve upon prior art spools and, inso doing, toprovide a feasible construction which should appeal to the manufacturingeconomies of manufacturers, to advertising and sales and storage needsof wholesalers and retailers and which, when fully appreciated by users,will better serve the needs of such users.

Briefly the spool herein shown is characterized by a hollow cylindricalopen-ended hub-forming core which is preferably made of rigid cardboard.A pair of interchangeable duplicate disk-like spool heads function, asusual, to abut the open ends of the core. The diameter of the axialholes in the heads corresponds with the inside diameter of the borewhich extends through the core. The apertured portions of the heads arealigned with the open ends of the core which makes for practical andacceptable use of the novel head and core assembling and retainingconnectors or adapters. Each connector comprises a plastic head and coreconnecting sleeve which is press fitted into the hole of the coactinghead after which the projecting end portion of the sleeve can betelescopingly fitted and frictionally retained in the bore of the core.The inner piloting end of each sleeve is tapered or reduced tofacilitate guiding the same not only into the hole of the head but intothe bore of the core. The peripheral portion of the sleeve proximal oradjacent to the junction point of a head abutting flange is ofprescribed diameter to friction lock the sleeve in place but to permitdismantling, if so desired.

Prior art ferrules and unifying connectors in this field of endeavor arefor the most part glued in place. Manifestly, glue can 'be objectionableinasmuch as it frequently runsuncontrollably and when the finished spoolis used the product being spooled is quite often stained or otherwisedamaged. The instant connector is precision made and need notnecessarily be glued for the reason that it presents ample area to pressand lodge itself within the bore of the core. In the case of competitivemetal plugs, when they are stamped out, they normally have two eccentricsurface points and these are the pressure points relied upon foranchorage. By comparison, when the herein improved flanged connectordoes require anchoring (as is often the case) this step is uniquelyachieved by use of any suitable chemical (such as acetone, ethylenechloride or the like) which acts on the plastic sleeve. To this end, thedesired result is accomplished by interiorly wetting the end of the corewith the selected chemical media. When the sleeve is inserted, thechemical media acts on the sleeves surface and renders it tacky. Thethen sticky plastic surface is bonded in place. The chemical evaporatesand a bond is had with not the slightest chance of staining.

Then too, it should be noted that prior art metal plugin type collarsand connectors are'often bent or'deforme'd or perhaps flared out and areoften dangerous to users. By comparison, the herein disclosed connectorsare made .of pliant plastic material, such as polystyrene, and areconstant in shape and are amply smooth-surfaced that the chances ofcutting and snagging are reduced to a safe minimum. Further, the innerbore of the plug-in sleeve is smooth and uniform in diameter, isprovided with equidistant circumferentially spaced spindle engaging andstabilizing ribs, and has a smooth-edged annular or ringlike lip whichruns evenly on the off-winding spindles and resists wear and tear,unlike competitive metal collars.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed,referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof,wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in a perspective of a spool with individuallyprefabricated component parts constructed in accordance with theinvention and with the parts in exploded relationship and in readinessto be put together. FIG. 2 is a view on a smaller scale in section andwith the parts assembled and forming the ready-to-use spool. FIG. 3 isan enlarged detail fragmentary sectional view which emphasizes thetapered inner end portion of each sleeve and showing the internalsmooth-edged annular lip and flush spindle engaging ribs.

FIG. 4 is a view in perspective showing one of the plastic head or coreassembling connectors by itself.

With reference now to the four views of the drawing attention is firstdirected to FIG. 1 wherein the five component parts are shown inexploded or separate readyto-assemble relationship. In this illustrationand also in FIGS. 2 and 3 the hollow or tubular cylindrical core,sometimes referred to as the hub, is denoted by the numeral 6. Inpractice this is made from a suitable grade of substantially rigidcardboard. The bore is denoted at 8 and the respective straight-acrossopen ends are denoted at 10. The diameter of the bore 8 is such that itcorresponds with the axial holes 12 in the flat-faced disk-likecardboard end heads 14. The readily applicable adapters which areemployed (at the left and right in FIGS. 1 and 2 respectively) are thesame in construction and a description of one will suflice for both.Adapters such as these are referred to in various ways in the prior artsuch as, for example, flanged thimbles, attachable and detachable plugs,ferrules and so on. In the instant matter it is desired to refer to eachsuch unit as a head and core assembling, uniting and retainingconnector. Each connector instead of being made of metal or cardboard ismade of moldable pliant plastic materials, for example, polystyrene.Each connector is denoted by the numeral 16 and is characterized by aprecision made sleeve 18 which is of an outside diameter to fit withrequisite nicety into the hole 12 and to extend beyond the same and tofit telescopingly and snugly within the encompassing confines of thebore 8 of the core 6. The larger outside diameter or annular portion 20of the sleeve is of predetermined diameter and is smooth completelyaround the circumference. The outer end portion 22 is provided with amain outstanding flat-faced flange 24 which is of a diameter to abut thecoacting exterior surface of the head as brought out in FIGS. 2 and 3 inparticular. The inner marginal portion of the flange projects into thesmooth bore 26 of the sleeve as denoted at 28 and provides what may bedescribed as an auxiliary flange and which has a smooth uninterruptededge 30. This edge flange is also referred to as a lip which is of adiameter and construction to aptly embrace and run evenly on anoff-winding spindle (not shown) whereby to resist and diminish wear onsaid spindle. This bore or surface is also provided with equidistantcircumferentially spaced longitudinally extending integral ribs 32 whichare of a cross-section corresponding to the transverse cross-section ofthe lip or flange 28 and whose crest surfaces are flush with the edge30. These ribs serve as reinforcing or stabilizing members and also arein a common plane and accordingly flush with the oriented free edge 30whereby the ribs and lip cooperate in reducing Wobbling of the over-allspool when it is used on the aforementioned spindle. It will be alsonoticed that the exterior surface of the sleeve is not of uniformdiameter but that the inner end thereof is gradually reduced inthickness to provide a tapering and piloting member as at 34. Thisconstruction facilitates inserting the sleeve portion of the over-allconnector in a seemingly selfevident manner.

As is evident from the preceding introductory portion of thespecification this spool can be of the knockdown construction shown inFIG. 1 and wherein the telescoping sleeves are snugly but frictionallyheld in place. It is reiterated that because the connector is precisionmade it need not necessarily be glued. When however the unique flangedconnector does require anchoring (as is often the case) this step isuniquely achieved by use of any suitable chemical, acetone, ethylenechloride or an equivalent chemical, which acts on the plastic sleeve foranchoring purposes in the manner illustrated in FIG. 3. To this end thedesired result is accomplished by interiorly wetting the end of the corewith the selected chemical media. When the sleeve is inserted, thechemical media acts on the surface and renders it sticky or tacky. Thethen temporarily sticky plastic surface is bonded in place as denoted at36 in FIG. 3. Repeated experience has shown that the chemical whenproperly selected and applied evaporates and a bond is had wherein thechance of staining is reduced to a practical minimum.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A knockdown-type spool whose component parts are capabe of beingassembled or disassembled on the spot comprising, a hollow cylindricalopen-ended hub-forming cardboard core, a pair of like interchangeablefiat-faced centrally apertured disk-like cardboard spool heads, theapertures therein providing axial holes of a precise diameter capable ofregistering accurately with coating ends of the bore of said core, andreadily attachable and detachable head and core assembling, coupling,and retaining connectors for said core and heads, each connector beingmade of moldable plastic material and comprising a sleeve having areduced tapering inner end and a lateral head abutting and clampingflange at an outer end of said sleeve, the bore of said sleeve beingprovided at its outer end with an integral relatively narrow ring-likelip whose outer face is flush with a coordinating outer face of saidflange, the free circumscribing edge of said lip being uninterruptedlysmooth to aptly embrace and run evenly on an olf-winding spindle,whereby to resist and diminish wear on the spindle.

2. The spool defined in and according to claim 1, and wherein the wallof the sleeves bore is provided with a plurality of equidistantcircumferentially spaced reinforcing ribs, said ribs extendinglongitudinally of the bore and being of a transverse cross-sectionaldimension equal to the cross-sectional dimension of said lip so that thecrests of the ribs are in a common plane and accordingly flush with theoriented free edge of said lip, said free edge and coordinating ribscooperating in reducing wobbling of the over-all spool when in use onsaid spindle.

3. A knockdown-type spool comprising a hollow cylindrical open-endedhu'b-forming-core, a pair of interchangeable centrally apertureddisk-type spool heads, the apertures in said heads providing axiallypositioned holes and said holes registering precisely with coacting endsof the bore of said hub-forming core, and readily attachable anddetachable head and core assembly, coupling and retaining connectorsoriented and cooperable with said heads and core, each connector beingmade of moldable plastic material and comprising a relatively shortsleeve telescoping into the cooperating end of the bore of said core,said sleeve having an outer end provided with a right angularly disposedhead-abutting, clamping and retaining flange, the bore of said sleevebeing provided at an outer end with an integral complemental relativelynarrow ring-like lip whose outer face is flush with a cooperating outerface of said flange, said lip having a free spindle encircling edge,said edge being uninterruptedly smooth and of a diameter to conforminglyembrace and run evenly on an olf-winding spindle, whereby to resist anddiminish wear on said spindle.

6 4. The spool defined in and according to claim 1 and FOREIGN PATENTSwherein the outer peripheral surface of said sleeve is 769 574 10 1coated with a chemical solvent which is adhesively bonded 989482 23g; 23:32 to the encompassing surface of the bore of said hub-form- 1:231:132 4/1960 France: ing core. ,022 1 References Cited 5 1 ,5 3 3/ 1966Great Bntaln 1,919,769 7/1933 Brown et a1 242-685 U. S. Cl. X.R.

3,260,362 7/1966 Schwinne 24268.6 X 10 24268.6

